A theme park in southern China has been criticised by local residents for
offering half-price entry to women wearing mini-skirts.

The Merryland Resort near Guilin is running a “Love Miniskirts” campaign for the next two months, allowing female visitors to secure a discounted ticket if they are wearing a skirt shorter than 38 centimetres.

A local television station has broadcast footage of staff at the entrance of the park measuring arriving guests’ skirts with rulers, according to Shanghai Daily, the English-language newspaper. The owners of those which are deemed short qualify for a 55 yuan ticket.

“The stipulation aims to encourage female visitors to showcase their beauty in summer,” Li Wenxing, deputy manager of the park, told the newspaper.

He said that the offer had been made each year since 2007, and had proven a great success. Its annual water-splashing festival attracted even more visitors, he added.

He also admitted that the publicity stunt had received criticism from residents of Guilin, in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, for encouraging women to behave in a lewd and vulgar manner.